Bill Cosby's lawyers urged a jury Tuesday to acquit the 80-year-old comedian of sexual assault charges they said were based on "flimsy, silly, ridiculous evidence," arguing he was falsely accused by a "pathological liar" scheming for a big payday.

The first big celebrity trial of the #MeToo era was nearly in the hands of a jury after the defense declared that Cosby himself was the victim of an elaborate frame-up.